Translating building automation events into mobile notifications

ABSTRACT

Devices, methods, and systems for translating building automation events into mobile notifications are described herein. One device includes a memory, and a processor configured to execute executable instructions stored in the memory to receive a notification of an event from a building automation system, translate the event into a mobile notification of the event, and transmit the mobile notification of the event to a mobile device.

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/168,688, filed May 31, 2016, entitled. “TRANSLATING BUILDINGAUTOMATION EVENTS INTO MOBILE NOTIFICATIONS,” which is herebyincorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to devices, methods, and systems fortranslating building automation events into mobile notifications.

BACKGROUND

Building automation systems can be complex distributed systems used toautomate monitoring and control of a facility (e.g., building). Forexample, a building automation system can include many different piecesof equipment, components, and/or devices. As an example, a buildingautomation system can include different pieces of heating, ventilation,and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment, as well as other equipment suchas sensors, operating panels, controllers, actuators, etc.

A user, such as, for instance, an operator or facility manager, mayroutinely interact with a building automation system of a facility tomonitor and control the facility. For example, the user may reviewnotifications of events from the building automation system, such as,for instance, alarms or warnings, and may make adjustments to controlcomponents or other operations of the building automation systems (e.g.,in response to the notifications).

Such interactions may occur (e.g., be conducted), for example, in acontrol room of the building automation system or facility. However, inprevious approaches, the user may be limited to certain locations, suchas the control room or other location in the building automation systemand/or facility, at which he or she can conduct such interactions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a system for translating building automation eventsinto mobile notifications in accordance with one or more embodiments ofthe present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates a method for translating building automation eventsinto mobile notifications in accordance with one or more embodiments ofthe present disclosure.

FIG. 3A illustrates a computing device for translating buildingautomation events into mobile notifications in accordance with one ormore embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3B illustrates a mobile device for translating building automationevents into mobile notifications in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Devices, methods, and systems for translating building automation eventsinto mobile notifications are described herein. For example, one or moreembodiments include a memory, and a processor configured to executeexecutable instructions stored in the memory to receive a notificationof an event from a building automation system, translate the event intoa mobile notification of the event, and transmit the mobile notificationof the event to a mobile device.

Embodiments of the present disclosure can allow a user, such as, forinstance, an operator or facility manager, to interact with a buildingautomation system of a facility to monitor and/or control the facilityeven if the user is remote to (e.g., located remotely from) the buildingautomation system or facility. For example, embodiments of the presentdisclosure can allow the user to maintain awareness of events occurringin the building automation system or facility even if the user isoutside of the control room or other typical work location of thebuilding automation system or facility.

In the following detailed description, reference is made to theaccompanying drawings that form a part hereof. The drawings show by wayof illustration how one or more embodiments of the disclosure may bepracticed.

These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those ofordinary skill in the art to practice one or more embodiments of thisdisclosure. It is to be understood that other embodiments may beutilized and that process, electrical, and/or structural changes may bemade without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The figures herein follow a numbering convention in which the firstdigit or digits correspond to the drawing figure number and theremaining digits identify an element or component in the drawing.Similar elements or components between different figures may beidentified by the use of similar digits. For example, 108 may referenceelement “08” in FIG. 1, and a similar element may be referenced as 308in FIG. 3A.

As will be appreciated, elements shown in the various embodiments hereincan be added, exchanged, combined, and/or eliminated so as to provide anumber of additional embodiments of the present disclosure. Theproportion and the relative scale of the elements provided in thefigures are intended to illustrate the embodiments of the presentdisclosure, and should not be taken in a limiting sense.

As used herein, “a” or “a number of” something can refer to one or moresuch things. For example, “a number of mobile devices” can refer to oneor more mobile devices.

FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100 for translating building automationevents into mobile notifications in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, system 100can include a building automation system 102, and a platform 106 remoteto (e.g., located remotely from) building automation system 102. Forexample, platform 106 can be a network-based (e.g., a cloud-based)platform. As shown in FIG. 1, platform 106 can include computing device108 and database 110, which will be further described herein.

As used herein, a “building automation system” (e.g., buildingautomation system 102) can refer to any type of system that can be usedto automate the monitoring and/or control of a facility or building. Forexample, a building automation system can be used to check and/or setthe state of control components, equipment, devices, networks, areas,and/or spaces of the facility or building. As an additional example, abuilding automation system can be used to manage alarms and/orincidents, such as, for instance, security incidents, that may occur atthe facility or building. Further, a building automation system may be acomplex distributed system that includes many different pieces ofequipment, components, and/or devices. As an example, a buildingautomation system can include different pieces of heating, ventilation,and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment, as well as other equipment suchas sensors, operating panels, controllers, actuators, etc.

Building automation system 102 can detect events occurring in buildingautomation system 102, which can correspond to incidents occurring atthe building or facility being managed by building automation system102. For example, an alarm or warning occurring in and detected bybuilding automation system 102 can provide an indication (e.g., an alarmor warning) of an incident occurring at the building or facility. Thatis, the event can be an alarm or warning indicating that an incident,such as, for instance, a fire or security breach, is occurring at thebuilding or facility. As an additional example, the event can be and/orinclude a discussion (e.g., chat) between operators and/or facilitymanagers about an incident occurring at the building or facility.However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to aparticular type of event or events that can be detected by buildingautomation system 102.

As shown in FIG. 1, building automation system 102 can include an eventdetection mechanism 104 for detecting events occurring in buildingautomation system 102. For example, event detection mechanism 104 can bean alarm system that can detect alarms, such as fire and/or securityalarms, occurring in building automation system 102.

Further, building automation system 102 (e.g., event detection mechanism104) can detect events based on information (e.g., data) received bybuilding automation system 100. For instance, building automation system102 can detect events based on information received from alarms,sensors, controllers, or other equipment, components, and/or devices ofbuilding automation system 102.

Upon detecting an event, building automation system 102 can transmit(e.g., send) a notification of the event to platform 106. That is,platform 106 can receive a notification of the event from buildingautomation system 102. For instance, the notification can be received bycomputing device 108 of platform 106.

Platform 106 (e.g., computing device 108) can receive the notificationof the event from building automation system 102 via network 112, asillustrated in FIG. 1. Network 112 can be a network relationship throughwhich controller platform 106 (e.g., computing device 108) and buildingautomation system 102 and mobile device 114 can communicate. Examples ofsuch a network relationship can include a distributed computingenvironment (e.g., a cloud computing environment), a wide area network(WAN) such as the Internet, a local area network (LAN), a personal areanetwork (PAN), a campus area network (CAN), or metropolitan area network(MAN), among other types of network relationships. For instance, network112 can include a number of servers that receive the notification of theevent from building automation system 102 via a wired or wirelessnetwork, and transmit the received notification to platform 106 via awired or wireless network.

As used herein, a “network” (e.g., network 112) can provide acommunication system that directly or indirectly links two or morecomputers and/or peripheral devices and allows users to access resourceson other computing devices and exchange messages with other users. Anetwork can allow users to share resources on their own systems withother network users and to access information on centrally locatedsystems or on systems that are located at remote locations. For example,a network can tie a number of computing devices together to form adistributed control network (e.g., cloud).

A network may provide connections to the Internet and/or to the networksof other entities (e.g., organizations, institutions, etc.). Users mayinteract with network-enabled software applications to make a networkrequest, such as to get a file or print on a network printer.Applications may also communicate with network management software,which can interact with network hardware to transmit information betweendevices on the network.

Upon receiving the notification of the event, platform 106 (e.g.,computing device 108) can translate the event into a mobile notificationof the event. The mobile notification can be, for example, a pushnotification having a common data format. That is, translating the eventinto the mobile notification can include translating the event into apush notification having a common data format. As used herein, a commondata format refers to a self-describing data format for the storage andmanipulation of data in a platform and discipline independent manner.

Further, translating the event into the mobile notification of the eventcan include mapping the event to a message template for that type ofevent (e.g., an alarm event is mapped to an alarm message template, awarning event is mapped to a warning message template, etc.), and addinginformation (e.g., data and/or details) about that event to the messagetemplate. That is, the mobile notification can comprise the messagetemplate for that event with additional information about the eventadded in.

The additional information about the event may be included in, and takenfrom, the notification of the event received from building automationsystem 102. Further, different message templates for different eventtypes can be stored in database 110. Upon receiving the notification ofthe event, computing device 108 can determine the type of event in thenotification (e.g., based on the information in the notification), andretrieve the message template for that event type from database 110. Theevent itself may also be stored in database 110, for use in generatingmobile notifications of subsequent events.

Upon translating the event into the mobile notification, platform 106(e.g., computing device 108) can transmit the mobile notification of theevent to a mobile device, such as mobile device 114 illustrated inFIG. 1. Mobile device 114 can be, for example, the mobile device of anoperator or facility manager of building automation system 102.

Mobile device 114 can be, for example, a smart phone, a tablet, or aPDA, among other types of mobile devices. In some embodiments, mobiledevice 114 can be a wearable device, such as, for instance, a smartwatch. Mobile device 114 will be further described herein (e.g., inconnection with FIG. 3B).

Platform 106 can transmit the mobile notification to mobile device 114,for example, via network (e.g., cloud computing environment) 112. Assuch, mobile device 114 can be remote to platform 106 and buildingautomation system 102. Accordingly, the user of mobile device 114 (e.g.,the operator or facility manager) can receive the notification of theevent even if the user is remote to building automation system 102. Forinstance, the user of mobile device 114 can receive the notification ofthe event even if the user is outside of the control room or othertypical work location of building automation system 102.

In some embodiments, platform 106 (e.g., computing device 108) may onlytransmit the mobile notification of the event to mobile device 114 ifplatform 106 has previously received a valid registration from mobiledevice 114 indicating the user of mobile device 114 is a registered userof building automation system 102. Further, platform 106 may onlytransmit the mobile notification of the event to mobile device 114 ifplatform 106 has previously received an opt in from mobile device 114indicating the user of the mobile device would like to receivenotifications of events from building automation system 102.

Although the example illustrated in FIG. 1 includes one buildingautomation system and one mobile device, embodiments of the presentdisclosure are not so limited, and can include any number of buildingautomation systems and mobile devices. For example, platform 106 (e.g.,computing device 108) can receive notifications of events from a numberof additional building automation systems, store the events in database110, and translate the events into mobile notifications of those eventsin a manner analogous to that previously described herein for eventsdetected by and transmitted from building automation system 102.Further, platform 106 (e.g., computing device 108) can transmit thesemobile notifications, as well as the mobile notifications of eventsreceived from building automation system 102, to any number of mobiledevices, including and/or in addition to mobile device 114, in a manneranalogous to that previously described herein.

FIG. 2 illustrates a method 220 for translating building automationevents into mobile notifications in accordance with one or moreembodiments of the present disclosure. Method 220 can be performed, forexample, by platform 106 previously described in connection with FIG. 1.For instance, method 220 can be performed by computing device 108 ofplatform 106.

At block 222, method 220 includes receiving notifications of a number ofevents from a building automation system. The building automation systemcan be, for example, building automation system 102 previously describedin connection with FIG. 1, and the events can be detected by thebuilding automation system as previously described herein (e.g., inconnection with FIG. 1). Further, the notifications can be received viaa network (e.g., a cloud computing environment), such as, for instance,network 112 previously described in connection with FIG. 1.

At block 224, method 220 includes storing each of the number of eventsin a database. The database can be, for example, database 110 previouslydescribed in connection with FIG. 1.

At block 226, method 220 includes translating each respective one of thenumber of events into a mobile notification of that respective events.The mobile notifications can be, for example, push notifications havinga common data format, as previously described herein (e.g., inconnection with FIG. 1), and each respective event can be translatedinto a mobile notification in a manner analogous to that previouslydescribed herein (e.g., in connection with FIG. 1).

At block 228, method 220 includes transmitting the mobile notificationsof each of the number of events to a mobile device. The mobile devicecan be, for example, mobile device 114 previously described inconnection with FIG. 1, and the mobile notifications can be transmittedto the mobile device via network 112 in a manner analogous to thatpreviously described in connection with FIG. 1.

FIG. 3A illustrates a computing device 308 for translating buildingautomation events into mobile notifications in accordance with one ormore embodiments of the present disclosure, and FIG. 3B illustrates amobile device 314 for translating building automation events into mobilenotifications in accordance with one or more embodiments of the presentdisclosure. Computing device 308 and mobile device 314 can be, forexample, computing device 108 and mobile device 114, respectively,previously described in connection with FIG. 1.

As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, computing device 308 can include a memory334 and a processor 332, and mobile device 314 can include a memory 344and a processor 342. Memories 334 and 344 can be any type of storagemedium that can be accessed by processors 332 and 342, respectively, toperform various examples of the present disclosure. For example, memory334 can be a non-transitory computer readable medium having computerreadable instructions (e.g., computer program instructions) storedthereon that are executable by processor 332 to translate buildingautomation events into mobile notifications in accordance with thepresent disclosure. That is, processor 332 can execute the executableinstructions stored in memory 334 to translate building automationevents into mobile notifications in accordance with the presentdisclosure.

Memories 334 and 344 can be volatile or nonvolatile memory. Memories 334and 344 can also be removable (e.g., portable) memory, or non-removable(e.g., internal) memory. For example, memories 334 and 344 can be randomaccess memory (RAM) (e.g., dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and/orphase change random access memory (PCRAM)), read-only memory (ROM)(e.g., electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM)and/or compact-disk read-only memory (CD-ROM)), flash memory, a laserdisk, a digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage,and/or a magnetic medium such as magnetic cassettes, tapes, or disks,among other types of memory.

Further, although memories 334 and 344 are illustrated as being locatedin computing device 308 and mobile device 314, respectively, embodimentsof the present disclosure are not so limited. For example, memories 334and/or 344 can also be located internal to another computing resource(e.g., enabling computer readable instructions to be downloaded over theInternet or another wired or wireless connection).

As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, computing device 308 can include a userinterface 336, and mobile device 314 can include a user interface 346. Auser (e.g., operator or facility manager) of computing device 308 caninteract with computing device 308 via user interface 336, and a user ofmobile device 314 can interact with mobile device 314 via user interface346. For example, user interface 346 can provide (e.g., display and/orpresent) information to the user of mobile device 314, such as, forinstance, a mobile notification of an event from a building automationsystem in accordance with the present disclosure. Further, userinterface 346 can receive information from (e.g., input by) the user ofmobile device 314.

In some embodiments, user interfaces 336 and/or 346 can be graphicaluser interfaces (GUIs) that can include a display (e.g., a screen) thatcan provide and/or receive information to and/or from the user ofcomputing device 308 and mobile device 314, respectively. The displaycan be, for instance, a touch-screen (e.g., the GUI can includetouch-screen capabilities). As an additional example, user interface 336can include a keyboard and/or mouse the user can use to inputinformation into computing device 308. Embodiments of the presentdisclosure, however, are not limited to a particular type(s) of userinterface.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same techniques can be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments of thedisclosure.

It is to be understood that the above description has been made in anillustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combination of theabove embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically describedherein will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing theabove description.

The scope of the various embodiments of the disclosure includes anyother applications in which the above structures and methods are used.Therefore, the scope of various embodiments of the disclosure should bedetermined with reference to the appended claims, along with the fullrange of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

In the foregoing Detailed Description, various features are groupedtogether in example embodiments illustrated in the figures for thepurpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is notto be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the embodiments of thedisclosure require more features than are expressly recited in eachclaim.

Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter liesin less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus, thefollowing claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.

What is claimed:
 1. A computing device for translating a buildingautomation event into a mobile notification, comprising: a memory; and aprocessor configured to execute executable instructions stored in thememory to: receive a notification of an event from a building automationsystem; translate the event into a mobile notification of the event by:retrieving a message template for that event type from a database thatstores different message templates for different event types; mappingthe event to the message template for that event type retrieved from thedatabase; and adding information about the event to the message templatefor that event type, such that the mobile notification of the eventcomprises the message template for that event type with the informationabout the event added in, wherein the information about the event addedto the message template is included in and taken from the receivednotification and includes data or details about the event to be providedto each respective user of a plurality of mobile devices; and push themobile notification of the event out to each of the plurality of mobiledevices.
 2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the mobilenotification is translated into a common data format.
 3. The computingdevice of claim 2, wherein the common data format is a self-describingdata format that is platform independent.
 4. The computing device ofclaim 1, wherein the event corresponds to an alarm.
 5. The computingdevice of claim 1, wherein the event corresponds to a warning.
 6. Thecomputing device of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured toexecute the instructions to: receive the notification of the event fromthe building automation system via one or more networks including afirst network; and push the mobile notification of the event out to eachof the plurality of mobile devices across one or more networks includingthe first network.
 7. The computing device of claim 6, wherein the firstnetwork comprises the Internet.
 8. The computing device of claim 1,wherein at least one of the plurality of mobile devices is a smartphone.
 9. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the computing devicereceives an opt-in from each of the plurality of mobile devices toreceive notifications of events from the building automation systembefore the mobile notification of the event is pushed out to each of theplurality of mobile devices.
 10. A method for translating a buildingautomation event into a mobile notification, comprising: receiving, by acomputing device, notifications of a number of events from a buildingautomation system; storing each of the number of events in a databasethat also stores different message templates for different event types;translating, by the computing device, each respective one of the numberof events into a mobile notification of that respective event; andpushing, by the computing device, the mobile notifications of each ofthe number of events out to each of a plurality of mobile devices. 11.The method of claim 10, wherein translating each respective one of thenumber of events into the mobile notification of that respective eventincludes translating each respective event into a common data format.12. The method of claim 11, wherein the common data format is aself-describing data format that is platform independent.
 13. The methodof claim 10, wherein the method includes: receiving, by the computingdevice, notifications of a number of events from an additional buildingautomation system; storing each of the number of events from theadditional building automation system in the database; translating, bythe computing device, each respective one of the number of events fromthe additional building automation system into a mobile notification ofthat respective event; and pushing, by the computing device, the mobilenotifications of each of the number of events from the additionalbuilding automation system out to each of the plurality of mobiledevices.
 14. A system for translating a building automation event into amobile notification, comprising: a building automation system; anetwork-based platform remote to the building automation system; whereinthe building automation system is configured to: detect an eventoccurring in the building automation system; and transmit a notificationof the event to the network-based platform; and wherein thenetwork-based platform is configured to: translate the event into amobile notification of the event by: retrieving a message template forthat event type from a database that stores different message templatesfor different event types; mapping the event to the message template forthat event type retrieved from the database; and adding informationabout the event to the message template for that event type, such thatthe mobile notification of the event comprises the message template forthat event type with the information about the event added in, whereinthe information about the event added to the message template isincluded in and taken from the notification of the event, and includesdata or details about the event to be provided to each respective userof a plurality of mobile devices; and pushing the mobile notification ofthe event out to each of the plurality of mobile devices.
 15. The systemof claim 14, wherein the network-based platform is configured to storethe event in the database.
 16. The system of claim 14, wherein thebuilding automation system is configured to detect the event based oninformation received by the building automation system.
 17. The systemof claim 14, wherein the building automation system includes an eventdetection mechanism configured to detect the event.
 18. The system ofclaim 17, wherein the event detection mechanism is an alarm system. 19.The system of claim 14, wherein the network-based platform is acloud-based platform.
 20. The system of claim 14, wherein the buildingautomation system is remote to each of the plurality of mobile devices.